Breaking News

Editorial

Let’s keep making state softball better and better

The girls state softball tournament has been part of Fort Dodge for 56 years. It’s going to be part of the community for another 20 years, through 2045. That is not just hopeful talk, that is a fact thanks to an unprecedented 20-year contract extension agreed to by the Fort Dodge city government and the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union. The extension was announced Sept. 10. The tournament has been held at Harlan and Hazel Rogers Sports Complex since 1970, but the contract that has kept the event here for so long has in the past only been extended for a few years at a time. ...

Urban deer hunt to begin in Fort Dodge on private lands

A deer hunting season is about to get underway in Fort Dodge. It will start Saturday, and chances are many people will have no indication that it is happening. The fact that the hunting won’t be obvious to everyone in town is a good thing. We hope it stays that way because that means the hunt is being conducted flawlessly by expert archers. The hunt will continue through Jan. 10, 2026, on privately owned land that meets size requirements. Most of that property is on the northern, eastern and western edges of the city. The decision to allow what is called an urban controlled bow ...

Clay County Fair is an Iowa treasure

The season for summer fairs and festivals is nearly at an end. For the countless Iowans and others who love county fairs, however, one big event remains — the Clay County Fair. The fair that opened in Spencer on Saturday and runs through Sunday is not just any fair. It is by far the largest county fair in Iowa and ranks among the grandest agricultural expositions in the nation. The members of the Clay County Fair Association had big plans for their fair when it launched more than 100 years ago. That first fair was the largest county fair held in Iowa its inaugural year, and ...

Fort Dodge needs a plan for crumbling buildings

Considering the sorry state of some buildings in town, Fort Dodge is lucky. It is lucky that no one has been killed by bricks that seem to drop off downtown buildings with alarming frequency lately. And it is lucky that no one has been killed in any of the fires that have ignited in abandoned buildings over the last couple of years. On the whole, Fort Dodge is a beautiful community that has so much going for it. Other Iowa communities probably wish they had something like Corridor Plaza or our trail system. And yet the community continues to be saddled with crumbling or burned ...

Nestle Purina PetCare plant shows what’s possible

Chances are great that all across the United States today, there are cats enjoying the feline delicacy known as Friskies. The food that those cats chow down on comes from Fort Dodge. Friskies and Fort Dodge have been connected for 50 years. The food is made in the Nestle Purina PetCare plant at 2400 Fifth Ave. S. that has been in operation since 1975. A plant that has been in operation that long is kind of a rarity in the pet food business. This particular plant has a history that mirrors that of the community it is located in. Like Fort Dodge, the plant had a real low point, ...

Dayton Rodeo fun has started

The roping and riding that make up the 2025 edition of the Dayton Labor Day Rodeo are underway. The small Webster County city will be packed with rodeo fans all weekend. What began more than eight decades ago as the dream of three young cowboys — Allen Porter, Duane Vegors and Vern Danielson — has grown to a four-day event that draws contestants and spectators not only from all parts of Iowa, but also from throughout the nation. This annual event attracts 10,000 to 12,000 rodeo fans, many of whom journey every year to Webster County for this nationally recognized event. For a few ...